U.S. national security report shows Taiwan's importance, but also 'shift': Expert

Washington, Dec. 5 (CNA) The latest National Security Strategy (NSS) report issued by the Trump administration demonstrated Taiwan's strategic importance, but also a shift in its commitment towards Taiwan, a former China policy advisor to the U.S. State Department said on Friday.

"The NSS correctly identifies Taiwan's strategic importance beyond semiconductors -- recognizing it 'provides direct access to the Second Island Chain and splits Northeast and Southeast Asia into two distinct theatersm,'" Ryan Fedasiuk, currently a fellow at the American Enterprise Institute, told CNA.

According to the NSS, which was released on Thursday, Taiwan's importance went beyond its dominance in the global semiconductor industry, while the importance is mostly because Taiwan provides direct access to the Second Island Chain and splits Northeast and Southeast Asia into two distinct strategic areas.

"Hence deterring a conflict over Taiwan, ideally by preserving military overmatch, is a priority," the report said.

Commenting on the priority suggested by the report, Fedasiuk said it sounded like "strategic logic."

While the report said the United States will continue to maintain its longstanding policy on Taiwan, it changed its wording, saying Washington "does not support" any unilateral change to the status quo in the Taiwan Strait, shifting from using the word "oppose" which it had used in the previous NSS issued by the Biden administration.

Fedasiuk said the shift from "oppose" to "dose not support" any unilateral change to the status quo in the Taiwan Strait meant "a meaningful downgrade" as "opposes" implies active opposition with potential consequences, but "does not support" suggests passive disapproval without commitment to take any action.

He described the omissions of "oppose" as significant as the new expression removed these commitments from the U.S. government's formulaic strategic framework, which has created room for President Donald Trump to claim he was not confined by previous formulations, in either direction, but offered "more flexibility for which aspects of its policy the administration would prefer to highlight at any given moment."

He added "does not support" represented "the clearest evidence of policy drift."

Fedasiuk said such a weaker language expression could result in two problems.

According to the scholar, the first is that the shift has softened the commitment of the U.S. against China's unilateral action from active opposition to passive disapproval, while the second is that the change has established downgraded language as the new baseline for future negotiations.

As a result, the scholar expected when Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) meets Trump next year, the Chinese leader will seek further adjustments.

Under the Biden administration, the 2022 NSS said the U.S. opposed any unilateral changes to the status quo from either side, and does not support Taiwan independence, while Washington remained committed to its one China policy, which is guided by the Taiwan Relations Act, the Three Joint Communiques, and the Six Assurances.

During Trump's first presidency, the NSS issued by his administration in 2017 only briefly mentioned Taiwan, saying the U.S. would maintain its strong ties with the island based on its "One China" policy, with its commitments under the Taiwan Relations Act to provide for its legitimate defense needs and to deter coercion.